Skip to content. | Skip to navigation

Personal tools

You are here: Home

Search results

RSS Subscribe to an always-updated RSS feed.

4611 items matching your search terms.
Filter the results.
Item type



































New items since



Sort by relevance · date (newest first) · alphabetically
Article Reference Optical teledetection of chlorophyll a in estuarine and coastal waters
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications
Article Reference Optimal timing of multiple investment decisions in a wood value chain: A real options approach
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2021
Article Reference Optimization and quality control of suspended particulate matter concentration measurement using turbidity measurements
The dry weight concentration of suspended particulate material, [SPM] (units: mg L-1), is measured by passing a known volume of seawater through a preweighed filter and reweighing the filter after drying. This is apparently a simple procedure, but accuracy and precision of [SPM] measurements vary widely depending on the measurement protocol and experience and skills of the person filtering. We show that measurements of turbidity, T (units: FNU), which are low cost, simple, and fast, can be used to optimally set the filtration volume, to detect problems with the mixing of the sample during subsampling, and to quality control [SPM]. A relationship between T and `optimal filtration volume', V opt, is established where V opt is the volume at which enough matter is retained by the filter for precise measurement, but not so much that the filter clogs. This relationship is based on an assessment of procedural uncertainties in the [SPM] measurement protocol, including salt retention, filter preparation, weighing, and handling, and on a value for minimum relative precision for replicates. The effect of filtration volume on the precision of [SPM] measurement is investigated by filtering volumes of seawater ranging between one fifth and twice V opt. It is shown that filtrations at V opt maximize precision and cost effectiveness of [SPM]. Finally, the 90\% prediction bounds of the T versus [SPM] regression allow the quality control of [SPM] determinations. In conclusion it is recommended that existing [SPM] gravimetric measurements be refined to include measurement of turbidity to improve their precision and quality control.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications
Book Reference Ore Deposits: Origin, Exploration, and Exploitation
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2019
Article Reference Organ- and species-specific accumulation of metals in two land snail species (Gastropoda, Pulmonata)
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications
Article Reference Organic carbon accumulation and productivity over the past 130 years in Lake Kawaguchi (central Japan) reconstructed using organic geochemical proxies.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2020
Article Reference Organic Matter Composition of Biomineral flocs and Its Influence on Suspended Particulate Matter Dynamics Along a Nearshore to Offshore Transect
The seasonal variation in concentration of transparent exopolymer particles (TEPs), particulate organic carbon (POC) and particulate organic nitrogen (PON) were investigated together with floc size and the concentration of suspended particulate matter (SPM) along the cross-shore gradient, from the high turbid nearshore toward the low-turbid offshore waters in the Southern Bight of the North Sea. Our data demonstrate that biophysical flocculation cannot be explained by these heterogeneous parameters, but requires a distinction between a more reactive labile (“fresh”) and a less reactive refractory (“mineral-associated”) fraction. Based on all data, we separated the labile and mineral-associated POC, PON, and TEP using a semi-empirical model approach. The model's estimates of fresh and mineral-associated organic matter (OM) show that great parts of the POC, PON, and TEP are associated with suspended minerals, which are present in the water column throughout the year, whereas the occurrence of fresh TEP, POC, and PON is restricted to spring and summer months. In spite of a constantly high abundance of total TEP throughout the entire year, it is its fresh fraction that promotes the formation of larger and faster sinking biomineral flocs, thereby contributing to reducing the SPM concentration in the water column over spring and summer. Our results show that the different components of the SPM, such as minerals, extracellular OM and living organisms, form an integrated dynamic system with direct interactions and feedback controls.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2022
Article Reference Organic Matter Composition of Biomineral Flocs and Its Influence on Suspended Particulate Matter Dynamics Along a Nearshore to Offshore Transect
The seasonal variation in concentration of transparent exopolymer particles (TEPs), particulate organic carbon (POC) and particulate organic nitrogen (PON) were investigated together with floc size and the concentration of suspended particulate matter (SPM) along the cross-shore gradient, from the high turbid nearshore toward the low-turbid offshore waters in the Southern Bight of the North Sea. Our data demonstrate that biophysical flocculation cannot be explained by these heterogeneous parameters, but requires a distinction between a more reactive labile (“fresh”) and a less reactive refractory (“mineral-associated”) fraction. Based on all data, we separated the labile and mineral-associated POC, PON, and TEP using a semi-empirical model approach. The model's estimates of fresh and mineral-associated organic matter (OM) show that great parts of the POC, PON, and TEP are associated with suspended minerals, which are present in the water column throughout the year, whereas the occurrence of fresh TEP, POC, and PON is restricted to spring and summer months. In spite of a constantly high abundance of total TEP throughout the entire year, it is its fresh fraction that promotes the formation of larger and faster sinking biomineral flocs, thereby contributing to reducing the SPM concentration in the water column over spring and summer. Our results show that the different components of the SPM, such as minerals, extracellular OM and living organisms, form an integrated dynamic system with direct interactions and feedback controls.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2022
Inproceedings Reference text/h323 Organizing large-scale biodiversity inventories in the tropics: lessons from IBISCA projects
Leponce, M.1, Pascal, O.2, Novotny, V.3,4 & Y. Basset5 (1) Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, Belgium (Maurice.Leponce@naturalsciences.be); (2) Pro-Natura International, France; (3) University of South Bohemia, Czech Rep.; (4) Czech Academy of Sciences; (5) Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Republic of Panama. Background: IBISCA is an international and informal network of biodiversity experts conducting large-scale biotic inventories in various regions of the World (www.ibisca.net). Each IBISCA project is a collective effort addressing a global ecological question. IBISCA-Panama (2003-2004) aimed at estimating the overall arthropod diversity of a lowland rainforest while the Papua New Guinea survey (2012-2014), conducted in the framework of the “Our Planet Reviewed” programme, aimed at assessing the diversity generated by the elevational factor, from sea level up to the tree line. Methods: All projects are multi-taxa (with an emphasis on plants and arthropods), multi-strata and multi-methods. A central database (DB) is at the heart of each project. Results: The data flow follows a 10 step standard process: (1) sampling design which is often a trade-off between sampling effort and representativeness; (2) pre-printing of permanent labels with unique codes for samples and specimens; (3) collection of specimens with standardized mass collection methods; (4) on-site pre-sorting of material by helpers (para-taxonomists, students) to Order level; (5) further sorting to Family level by Taxonomic Working Group (TWIG) leaders and dispatching of specimens to experts; (6) identification of the material to (morpho-)species level by taxonomic experts who send afterwards the results to their TWIG leader; (7) control of the quality of data by TWIG leaders who fill a data entry template and send it to the database administrator; (8) import and cleaning of the data by the database administrator; (9) analysis and publication of the data by participants, either collectively or individually; (10) export of the DB to a public repository of data. Assisted data entry with high tech equipment (barcode scanner, PDA) reduces the risk of errors. Discussion/conclusion: Our experience shows that the main bottleneck in the data flow is the processing of the huge quantity of specimens collected. Solutions include securing enough funds for this critical step, training research technicians (para-taxonomists/ecologists) to assist main investigators and focusing on a limited number of informative yet tractable taxa. An additional benefit is that providing employment to local research assistants supports initiatives of local communities to conserve their forests.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2017
Incollection Reference Organizing large-scale inventories of biodiversity in the tropics: the genesis and lessons of the project Our Planet Reviewed Papua New Guinea – land component
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2020